


Moment Like You

by bugheadscake



Category: Riverdale (TV 2017)
Genre: Established Relationship, F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Smut, Love, Post-Canon, Pre-Canon, Smut
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-19
Updated: 2019-01-19
Packaged: 2019-10-12 20:02:59
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,944
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17474099
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bugheadscake/pseuds/bugheadscake
Summary: After getting out of the Sisters of Quier Mercy, in Betty Cooper’s mind there’s only room for one person: him.Or in other words, the Bughead reunion we deserved.





	Moment Like You

**Author's Note:**

> I’m sorry if there’s any mistakes - I edited this myself. This takes place between episode 8 and 9 of season 3.

"Mom, please," she insisted, trying to let go of her grip. "It won't take too long, I just need to see him, I need to know he's okay."

Alice Cooper let out a sigh of pure exasperation and turned to face her daughter's pleading eyes. She looked at her with fierceness, and her grip tightened a little more in her arm, hurting her.

"This is the last time I say this to you, Elizabeth, so listen carefully," she imposed severely, but trying to not rise her tone of voice. "You're coming home, and you're coming now."

Tears filled Betty's eyes and she looked away with anger as she pulled brusquely from her arm, making Alice let go of her grip and turn on her heels towards the car, leaving her in the middle of the street feeling the breeze of the night brush against her exposed legs. She pulled from the sleeve of the red cardigan until it covered half of her hand, and turned her head to contemplate one more time the street devoured by the darkness. She sighed.

She wanted to see him, she needed to see him, and soon. She needed to run to him and hug him tightly, get lost in his scent and feel his arms wrap around her firmly while he caressed the blonde locks that fell over her shoulders. She needed to hear his voice whisper into her ear how much he loved her, she needed to feel his breath brush her face telling her that everything was going to be okay, because he was the only one capable of making her believe it. She needed it. She needed to believe it. 

She needed him.

They claxon of a car made her snap out of her thoughts, and she remembered that her mother was waiting for her. She walked towards the car and after getting in, she slammed the door shut a little harder than she intended. She didn't care.

None of them said a word during their way to the Cooper house, and it wasn't necessary either. Betty felt the blood boiling in her veins, and it took every ounce of her being to not open the car door and run to where she wanted to go, putting as much distance between her and her mother as possible. She rubbed her palms along her thighs in an attempt to not clench her fists and dig her nails in. It had been months since she had last done it, but her mother always managed to get the worst out of her and she was afraid she could do something she would regret out of habit.

When Alice announced they had arrived, she got out of the car before she could say something else.

She didn't want to fight.

She was so focused in trying to avoid her mother that Betty didn't notice the ladder resting under her window, and when she entered the house and went up to her room, Alice allowed herself to smile for the first time in the night, taking her phone out to make a call and going out of the house again. 

Betty felt the fury in every single part of her body when she closed the door and locked herself inside. She ran over to the bed and sank her head in the cushions, trying desperately to muffle her sobs. For once, once, that was her who needed something, her mother had to get in the middle. She looked up and wiped her tears with the sleeve of her cardigan, allowing herself to look around and drown into the memories and secrets that her room kept.

She didn't need to turn on the lights because the candles let her see every corner of the room clearly in the shadows, she hadn't noticed them before. She furrowed her brow. There were lots of them, giving the space a warm and cozy atmosphere. Everything was in place, they had gotten rid of the shady decorations the Gargoyle King had put in her bed and instead, her serpent jacket rested on the mattress.

She didn't know who had done it, but she immediately felt tears sting her eyes.

Her eyes found the mirror, and she walked towards it carefully. Her gaze raked over every inch of her reflection, from her red rimmed eyes and pink cheeks to the dirty white shoes the Sisters had given to her, and she sighed. She felt like a stranger, a person from outside contemplating her reflection, and at the same time she felt more like herself than ever. She lifted her hand and caressed the mirror's frame with her fingers until they brushed a picture hanging on the border that got her attention. She took it in her hands and stared at it with nostalgia.

It was a picture of them, smiling at the camera as if they were the only people in the room. Her lips twitched into a small smile when her eyes found his, in the picture, looking as handsome as always in that dark suit he had worn for Homecoming dance. A single tear slipped out of her eye, sliding down her cheek, and she could feel the salty taste in her lips. Betty remembered that night. It was the night they found the gun of Jason's murder in FP's trailer, the night Clifford Blossom had blackmailed him, told him to confess he had murdered his son. It all seemed so far away now. It scared her how many things had happened in such a short amount of time. All the tears that had been shed, all the blood that had been lost. The broken hearts. The laughter. The yells. The kisses. 

It was then when soft knocks on her window brought her back to reality, and her eyes met blue irides that made her knees go weak.

His eyes.

There was him, with his black leather serpent jacket and a dark lock peeking out of his beanie, looking at her as if for the very first time with a small smile twitching on his lips.

She felt the air escape her lungs.

The picture fell from her hands to the floor when she hurried to the window and opened it, her heart hammering inside her chest and feeling tears sting her eyes while a feeling of déjà vu invaded her. But he didn't get in, not yet. He stood and looked at her as his face broke into a radiant grin, and she didn't know she was also smiling until her she felt pain in her cheeks.

"Hey there, Juliet," he finally spoke, and she let out a sad chuckle. "Nurse off duty?"

She stepped aside so he could get in, and when he was finally standing next to her, they stayed getting lost into each other's gaze, feeling how the rest of the world vanished. She had an immense need to throw her arms around him and hug him tightly, but something kept her feet anchored to the floor, incapable of making a move. Then he spoke.

"I missed your smile."

And everything around her fell apart.

She moved quickly, the steps that separated them disappearing, and threw her arms around his neck. She pulled him tightly against her, until not even the lightest gust of wind could've gone trough them, just like she had wanted to do from the moment he saw him. His arms wrapped around her waist and pulled her closer, burying his face in the crook of her neck and he inhaled deeply, imprinting her vanilla scent in his mind as he hugged her tightly. He tangled his fingers in her blonde curls, and she felt the softness of his lips press a delicate kiss on her head that sent a shiver down her spine.

"Hey, I'm here. I'm here baby, it's okay," came the whisper against her neck. "I'm here, okay? I'm with you. I'm not going anywhere," he assured her, pressing a kiss just below her ear. 

A small sob escaped her lips and tightened her grip. She could feel him. She could feel his skin. She could feel his breath caressing her neck softly, almost gently. She could feel his heart hammering inside his chest, matching her own. She could feel him. 

'He's here,' she thought. 'He's here.'

She loosened her grip and pulled back, not quite enough for their bodies to separate, but enough so she could look into his eyes. Cautiously, his hands moved to place one of her blonde locks behind her ear, and she studied his face as he used his thumb to wipe the tears out of her cheek so delicately, so gently, that for a moment she thought she might start crying again. When he was finished, he smiled softly at her.

"You're beautiful," he murmured, his eyes never leaving hers. 

Betty looked around with a frown on her face, observing every corner of the room once again, and she understood. Her eyes found Jughead's, his gaze burning. Flames that reminded she was home, she was finally home.

"Juggie," she whispered with shaking voice. "You... You did all of this?" His smile grew bigger and Betty saw the glint in his eyes, and shook her head nervously. "No... You didn't have to, I-"

"Betty." He interrupted her, softly caressing her cheeks with his thumbs, and she closed her eyes, leaning into his touch. "Don't you see that I'd do anything for you?" She let out a small sob, and he swallowed. "Take this as... as an apology. For not being there when..."

His voice broke and she opened her eyes, just in time to see how he pulled away from her and turned, immediately missing his warmth. She looked at him with a confused expression on her face as he took his beanie off and ran his hands through his hair with frustration. He rested his hands on her dressing table, but he didn't look up. Unable to look at his reflection.

"Jug?," she asked, reaching for him carefully and resting her hand on his shoulder. He was trembling.

"I'm so sorry that I wasn't here for you," he whispered so softly, she thought she had imagined it, but she understood.

She extended her arm until she was able to cup his cheek and turn his face, turn him to her, to look into his eyes. She wasn't ready for the pain that she found reflected into them, and she felt she broke in half. So she did the only thing that came up to her: she pulled him to her and wrapped her arms around his neck, hugging him tightly. Trying to show him how much she loved him. Trying to show him how important he was to her. Trying to say what she couldn't express with words, what words couldn't express. It took him by surprise at first, but he eventually wrapped his arms around her waist and hugged her back, burying his face once again in her neck.

"It's not your fault," she said with calming voice, pulling him impossibly closer. "You couldn't have done anything about it, Jug. It's not your fault. But now I'm here, in your arms. See?" She felt how Jughead squeezed her gently, as if to make sure she was really there with him.

Betty couldn't tell how long they stayed like that, getting lost in each other's touch, each other's warmth, until they finally pulled back. Jughead's hands made their way to Betty's cheeks, and caressed them, removing the diffused tears from her face. He allowed himself to study her features, her beauty, making sure his eyes had raked over every part of her face. His gaze found her lips.

And then his lips were on hers.

Although he had wiped her face, he could feel the salty taste of the tears in his lips, and yet he felt how Betty smiled into the kiss, kissing him back slowly and running her delicate fingers through the dark waves hidden under his beanie, making it fall from his head. His hands left her cheeks, going down, raking her body until they were wrapped around her waist, pulling her closer to his warm body and she pressed against him. She hadn't realized how much she had missed him until that moment, more than she had imagined, more than she had believed, and for a brief moment she wondered if the magnitude of her feelings for him should scare her. 

'No,' she thought. The answer was no. And she was so sure about her answer because she knew, she was certain that he felt the same way about her. He had showed her, many times, with his words, and his kiss, and his touch. He had showed her that they weren't two, they were one, and he loved her more than anything. 

Suddenly, she broke the kiss and untangled her arms from around his neck, gripping his shirt instead, trying to find support to not fall. Jughead, still feeling a little dizzy from the kiss, opened his eyes and furrowed his brow, feeling the anxiety in his chest.

"Are you alright? What's wrong?," he asked, his voice filled with worry.

She looked at him, directly into his eyes, and the love he saw in them made him feel out of breath.

"I love you." The small smile that formed in her lips after saying it made him wonder once again what had he done to have someone like Betty Cooper loving him, but he quickly put the thought away. Instead, he lifted her up, making her wrap her legs around him and he felt her giggle vibrate against his chest. His face broke out into a grin and and pulled her as close as possible, inhaling her scent.

"I love you, I love you, I love you," he said back happily, not able to help himself, making them spin around the room. He felt as if the last time he'd heard those words had been a long time ago, and he'd almost forgotten how happy they made him. "I love you so much."

Betty laughed softly and pressed her lips against his, lifting her hands to cup his face, kissing him eagerly. Jughead put her down and his hands settled on her waist, kissing her back passionately. The house could be on fire, and he wouldn't care. The only thing he cared about in that moment was the girl in his arms, the girl kissing him as if the world was coming to an end and how nobody would ever make him feel as happy as he felt when he was around her.

Before any of them could realize it or do something about it, the kiss turned heated. Betty opened her mouth slightly and his tongue slid inside, stroking against hers, and the soft moan that escaped her lips was enough for the air in the room to change, getting heavier, making them both suddenly well aware of their bodies. Jughead pulled from Betty until the back of her knees brushed the bed and she involuntarily fell onto the mattress. She parted her legs and he settled between them, on top of her, his mouth never leaving hers as she wrapped her legs around him and lifted her hips up, moaning at the feel of his arousal pressing against her. 

He had missed her so much, he felt as if every emotion he was feeling multiplied, overwhelming him, and even though he wanted to go slow, his body wouldn't allow it. He momentarily broke the kiss to strip out of his jacket and throw it aside. Betty's eyes were filled with want and need and he could swear her gaze burnt every inch of his body. He tugged on her cardigan and pulled it off her with a quick movement, showing the skin of her exposed arms, and while she tried to unzip her blue dress his mouth moved over her neck, kissing, biting, sucking, determined to drive her out of her mind. 

His hands flew to the zipper of her dress and helped her, pulling it down her body, until she was clad in a black bra and matching panties. He lifted so he could look down at her, all the new exposed skin, and swallowed when his gaze found Betty's, burning with desire. He leaned in until his lips were on hers, kissing her with fervor until they were shaking. 

"You're so beautiful," he whispered against her lips. It didn't matter how many times he said it, it would never be enough. 

She pulled from his shoulders making him fall on his back, onto the mattress, rolling on top of him and pulling his shirt over his head. Her hands raked his torso, making him groan and shiver under her touch, and Jughead couldn't help himself when he gripped her waist and pressed against her, rocking his hips, thinking he might explode if he didn't find some kind of relief in the friction. Betty's soft whimper only aroused him more and he sat up and his mouth claimed hers in a bruising kiss, his tongue sliding inside her mouth and tasting her as if he'd never be able to do it again. 

But he needed more. 

They both needed more. 

With a quick movement, Jughead flipped Betty over and pressed against her, rocking his body over hers and making them both moan. He started pressing kisses along her jawline to her neck, and groaned at the wild pulse he found. His hands raked over the exposed skin of her back and unclasped her bra, throwing it aside and his mouth nearly watered at the sight in front of him. Fuck, she really was beautiful. He lifted his hand to cup her breast and, eyes never leaving hers, he teased her, caressing her skin with his thumb so subtly, so slowly, that she thought she might go crazy. 

"Jughead," she moaned, her arms coming around his neck trying to press against him. She felt his tongue brush her nipple and cried out. "Fuck," she cursed and arched her back, feeling him smile over her skin. He licked, sucked, drove her out of her mind until she was shaking and tugging on his hair. His mouth left her nipple and kissed his way down her body, down to where she was burning with need, and she shivered when she felt his breath brushing over the soft material. 

His fingers found the waistband of her panties and looked up, the look on her face making his pants impossibly tight and uncomfortable. Slowly, he slid the material down her legs, throwing it aside and she felt her stomach clench in anticipation when he swallowed. He leaned down and stared pressing kisses on her thighs, going up slowly. He pressed a kiss to her hipbone and she jumped slightly, making him laugh softly against her skin. He teased her, kissing every inch of her skin but not where she wanted it, where she needed it, until she lost patience. 

"Jug," she managed to choke out, bucking her hips up. "Please."

The plea in her voice made his head snap up, and her eyes were so filled with desire that he just couldn't keep teasing her. Her head pressed to the pillows and a low moan left her lips when he pushed her thighs apart and his tongue moved over her. 

"Oh, fuck," she said with shaking voice, her hips bucking up into his mouth, trying to add more pressure. Jughead laid his hand on her stomach and held her down as he licked over her aching center. His tongue pressed inside her and she cried out, her hands clenching into fists on the mattress. "Oh my god." 

He lifted his free hand when he felt her starting so shake a and circled her clit as he sucked and she fell apart, his name falling from her lips in gasps. Jughead groaned when he felt her orgasm in his tongue and he worked her through it. When she calmed, he pressed one last kiss over her center and lifted, taking her mouth in a slow, lazy kiss, making her whimper softly when she tasted herself in his mouth. She was gasping for breath, her body was covered in a sheen of sweat and she couldn't help but roll her eyes when she saw Jughead's smug grin. 

"Amazing?," he asked, clearly enjoying the situation, and she felt the heat in her cheeks.

"When did you become so confident in yourself and what you do?," she said with annoyance, looking up at him.

He laughed softly and leaned in to press a kiss in the corner of her lips.

"Having a girlfriend so sensitive and loud as Betty Cooper does wonders with a guy's self-esteem," he said with a smirk and she smacked his shoulder, blushing even harder. Jughead laughed again and kissed her slowly, wrapping his arms around her. He stroked his tongue against hers, making her knees go weak and soon she was already moaning and asking for more. 

Her hands flew to his black pants and tugged on his zipper, pushing it down and without a moment of hesitation, she reached inside and wrapped her hand around him.

"Fuck," he muttered under his breath as her hand moved slowly up and down his length, teasing him, making him groan. 

"I need you, Juggie," she whimpered. He pushed his pants and boxers down his legs and looked for something in his pocket. He settled between her legs, his length sliding against her wet folds, and she moaned in anticipation.

He stared at her for a moment, studying her features. Her hair was messy and a faint blush covered her cheeks, her lips were swollen from his kisses and her eyes were darker than usual, the look on her face driving him out of his mind.

"I love you," he whispered softly, pressing a kiss to her forehead and easing into her slowly. She whimpered and then he pushed further until he was completely buried inside of her. They both groaned at the sensation. She was so tight, he almost came right then and he went still for a moment, the feeling of being inside of her after a month overwhelming. 

"Move, Juggie," she said after a second, wrapping her arms around his neck and pulling him closer. He moved in and out of her, gently at first, but quickly his body picked up speed and force. His lips found her wild pulse and sucked, making her moan, the sound of their skin slapping filling the room. He thrust a little harder, desperate for release, and quickly he felt his orgasm starting to build.

"I'm not going to last, love," he managed to choke out, bringing his hand to circle her already sensitive clit when he felt her thighs start to shake. "Come with me, baby. Please."

She whimpered and closed her eyes when she felt herself rush to the edge and bucked against him, making him groan and she quickly fell apart, crying out his name, what triggered his own release.

And he lost himself in Heaven.

 

Her favorite place was in his arms. Nothing compared to the feeling of his arms wrapping around her, caressing her with his skin, making her shiver. It was the only place where she felt safe, where she could be herself: next to him. Next to him she felt home. 

He was her home. 

Now, every time someone mentioned the future, there wasn't an image where Jughead wasn't with her. With her in graduation day, with her at their house, with her in their wedding, with their children... It didn't matter what it was, it always made her smile. Then her mind wandered to months ago, long before, when she was that innocent girl who kept her mouth shut and silently cried in her room because the only guy she had ever liked didn't like her back. She sighed. What would've happened if Jughead hadn't climbed up her window that day? What would've happened if he hadn't kissed her? Would they be where they were now? Would she think the same way about the future?

Would she think about the future at all?

"Betty," a husky voice murmured beside her, bringing her back to reality. "What are you thinking about?"

Their eyes met, and for a brief moment, she got lost in that stormy blue mess of waves, hypnotized. She lifted her hand and hooked her fingers in his chin, leaned down and pressed a soft kiss to his lips. She smiled.

"You," she confessed in a whisper, holding his gaze. "And me, and what would have happened if that day months ago you hadn't climbed up my window and kissed me."

He smiled and squeezed her gently.

"I think I would've invented another excuse to kiss you," he answered with a chuckle. "I'm not so sure I could've contained myself for much longer. I'd been pinning after you for so long, I ended up convincing myself that you would never notice, but then..." She observed him carefully, waiting for him to continue. "But then... you saw me."

Betty tilted her head and furrowed her brow at his words. "What are you talking about? Of course I saw you," she said, lifting until she was sitting and looking directly into his eyes. "You were one of my best friends, Jug."

"No, Betty," he replied, lifting until he was facing her and resting his hands on the bed to support himself. "It's different." He sighed and ran a hand through his hair, trying to find the words to speak. He had never been one to talk about his feelings, he usually felt a lump in his throat, the words choking him. 

But he was with Betty, he reminded himself.

It was different with Betty. 

"There are a lot of things that have crossed my mind throughout my life," he began. "Things that come and go. Things that, with time, I always ended up forgetting one way or another. But if I'm sure of anything, it's that there's been one constant thought in my life since I can remember." He swallowed nervously and looked at her, forcing himself to continue, for her, and for himself. "It was you. I don't know how it happened, I just remember how one day I woke up in the morning wanting to make you smile. And the next day. And the next one. Months and months wanting to arrive to school to see you, to hug you, to hear your laugh every second of the day until I went to sleep. I couldn't get you out of my mind." Betty felt warmth spread in her chest as she listened to him, but then Jughead's expression darkened slightly. "But then I started realizing that it wasn't me who made you laugh, or who made you blush. I started realizing that it wasn't me who made you smile, and I wanted to see you smile. So I stayed away," he confessed in a whisper, and Betty felt her heart break. She wanted to hug him and tell him how much she loved him, but she let him finish. 

"But I never, never forgot about you. I still was that boy who woke up wanting to see a smile on your face and the same boy who loved your laugh, but I did it from the distance," he said with a small smile on his lips. "Until one day I just wasn't capable of staying away from you anymore." 

He looked up, into her eyes, he looked at her deeply, capturing that moment and stealing it from time, like a photograph, because it was his. His moment. It was her. It was always her.

"You looked at me. It was just a brief second, but it felt like hours to me. I had just entered Pop's with Archie and you were there, sitting in a booth, drinking a milkshake with Veronica and looking as beautiful as you've always been. Then you turned, and you saw me. You saw me as if it was the very first time you did it, with a glint in your eyes. And in that moment, I knew I was gone."

Betty's heart was hammering inside her chest and she felt tears sting her eyes. The words were stuck in her throat and she could only look at the boy in front of her, and reminded herself how lucky she was to love someone like him.

"Then everything happened so fast. Or in slow motion. Either way, I was completely out of game," he continued. "The only thing I can tell is that you took my heart before none of us could know it... and you took care of it. You took care of my heart. So sweetly, so gently, that all and each one of the things crossing my mind vanished in a second and I could only focus on you, in your smile, and that no matter what, I never, ever, wanted you to give my heart back."

Betty couldn't contain herself anymore. She threw her arms around him and burst into tears, hugging him tightly and pressing kisses on his skin. He hugged her back and pulled her closer, getting lost once again in the vanilla scent of her hair, deciding that he wanted to prolong that moment as much as possible.

"I love you," she sobbed into his neck. "I love you so much. More than anything."

"I love you too," he whispered back, tangling his fingers into her hair. "Always."


End file.
